Crosscut-saw



(No Model.)

S. HERSHEY.

GROSSGUT SAW.

. Patented Aug. 10,1897.

M @ym Homey N (1%.. @wa v UNrrED STATE-s YPATENT OFFICE.

SAMUEL HERSHEY, OF NEAR ALLENDALE, ILLINOIS.

CRossoUT-sAw SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 587,817, dated August 10, 189'?.

Application tiled December 23, 1896. Serial No. 616,738. (No model l [0 all whom, t 4Vntl/,U call/ocra;

Beit known that I, SAMUEL l-Innsnnv, a citizen of the United States, residing near Allendale, in the county of Vabash and State of Illinois, have invented a new and useful Crosscut-Saw, of which the following is a speciication.

This invention relates to crosscut-,sa\vs; and it consists of certain improvements in the construction of a saw-blade, the handles, and the means for attaching the handles to the blade.

The object of the invention is to provide a saw which can be Veasily and effectively operated by one man in felling trees or cutting up logs.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a plan view of my improved saw, showing the position of the handles at the commencement of a cut on a standing tree, the tree being shown in section. Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the position of the handles when the blade has fully entered the tree. Fig. 3 is a View of the saw as used to cut a log. Fig. 4 is a view of one of the handles, partly in section, attached to the saw-blade. Fig. 5 is a similar'view showing the other handle attached to the saw. Figs. 6 and 7 are views, the latter in section, of a detached detail.

Similar numerals of reference designate corresponding parts in the several igures of the drawings. y

1 represents the saw-blade, the butt-end of which is rounded, as indicated at 2. The blade is perforated near its butt-end about midway of its width, as indicated at 3. It is also provided with a series ofz perforations near its back edge, as indicated by 4, these perforations being a suitable distance apart. There is also a perforation 5 at the butt-end near the front edge of the blade, and the perforations 4 and 5 are all equidistant from the edge of the saw. l 6 represents what, for the purpose of clearness, will be designated the main handle. rlhis handle is longitudinally slotted at its lower end', as indicated at 7, the. slot being of such width as to receive the saw-blacle,tvl1ich should tit neatly therein. At the lower enrdthe handle is provided with a transverse perforation 8, through which and the opening 3 in the saw-blade a threaded bolt 9 passes and the square head of which engages one side of the handle, and a thumb-nut 10, which works on the threaded bolt, engages the opposite side of the handle. Another bolt 11, similar to that marked 9, also passes transversely through the handle at a point `j ust beyond the edge of the saw-blade, and this bolt is also provided with a thumb-nut, (marked l2.) It Will be seen, therefore, that by loosening the thumb-nuts l0 and 12 the handle 6 may be swung around the butt-end of the saw on the'bolt 9 to occupy any desired angle relative to the saw-blade and that it maybe rrnly held in the desired position by tightening up the thumbfnuts 10 and 12. The upper end of the handle Gis provided with a socket rigidly attached thereto, aud this socket 13 is interiorly screw-threaded and receives the threaded end of the section 14. The object in using the additional section or extension 14 with the handle 6 is to give the operator greater power on the saw when it is used to make a cut in a standing tree and also for the purpose of enabling the operator to cut up a log without having to stoop, as would be the case with a short handle.

The supplemental handle is marked 15, and this handle is designed to be secured in one of the openings, 4, oriu the opening 5 when used in connection with the handle 6, it being understood that the handle 6 is always 'secured in the opening 3. The handle 15 is in two sections, the upper one being preferably of wood with anV opening extending from its lower end some distance in its length, as indicated at 16. lIt is also provided with a square recess 17 a short distance from its lower end, which recess intersects the longitudinal opening 16 and is for the reception of a squared nut 18, thethreaded opening in which registe's with the longitudinal opening 16. The lower section of the handle consists of a yoke 19, preferably of metal, adapted to straddle the saw-blade and to be secured thereto bya pin 20, passing through the lower end of the yoke and one of the perforations in the sawblade. The yoke is provided with a threaded shank 2l, adapted to enter the opening 16 and to screw into the nut 1S.

22 represents a washer having a horizontal lower face 23 and an upper inclined face 24. The lower face is provided with a longitudinal groove 25 to fit over t-he back of the Saw IOO Y and with a transverse groove 26 for the recepton of the top of the yoke. The washer is also provided with an elongated opening extending vertically through it, as indicated by 27,'and which communicates with the transverse slot 26. Now if the yoke is connectedto the blade by the pin 2O and the Washer iitted over the yoke to rest on the back of the saw, with the shank 21 extending through the opening 27 and the upper section 15 of the handle screwed on the shank, the lower end of the section 15 will byits engagement with the inclined face of the washer throw the handle to an acute angle with the blade and at the same time clamp the handle-firmly to the blade. The transverse slot 26 and the elongated opening 27 will permit the yoke to move to the desired angle to the blade, and it is evident that the angle of inclination may be varied by using washers of varying inclinations on their upper faces.

In cutting down a tree it is necessary that the operator should have full control over the blade of the saw to hold it in the proper plane whilestarting the cut, and to enable him to do this the handles are arranged as shown in Fig. 1-t'.e., the main handle 6 is swung around to project at substantially a right angle beyond the saw-teeth, and the supplemental handle 15 is secured in one of the perforations on the back edge of the saw and at an acute angle to the saw. The operator is thus enabled to hold the saw steadily and in the proper plane to start the cut, steer the saw into the tree, and prevent it from running up or down, and the inclination of the handle 15 materially aids in holding the saw to its work.

When the saw has penetrated the tree a suicient distance to be supported in the properplane by the cut, as indicated in Fig. 2, the handle 6 is swung around to project at an acute angle to the back of the saw and the extension 14 is screwed into it. The handle 15 is moved from the back of the saw and secured to the butt-end through the opening 5. By reason of the lengthening of the handle 6 the operator gets increased power to holdythe saw to its work, and the vshort handle 15 enables him to hold the saw steadily. In practice it has been found that one man can by using a saw in this manner accomplish almost, if not quite, as much work as two men with the ordinary crosscut-saw.

Fig. 3 shows the handle 6 with its extension 14 attached to the saw when the saw is to be used for cutting up logs into suitable lengths, and it will be readily seen that the inclination of the handle tends to keep the saw to its work, and at the same time the operator can cut the log without stooping. Vhen used for this purpose, the supplemental handle. 15 may be dispensed with.

Another advantage arising from the use of a saw with a single handle is that the operator is enabled to make a much longer stroke. For instance, in cutting a log four feet in diameter with a six-foot saw if there is a handle at each end only a two-foot stroke can be made, whereas if only one handle is used the operator may make a much longer stroke-A say four feetand this longer stroke enables the saw to clear itself of sawdust muchbetter than it could on a short stroke, and the saw will consequently run faster and be more effective.

If necessary, my saw may be used as a twohandled saw by attaching the handle 15 to the front end of the saw, the opening 28 being provided for that purpose.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is- The combination with a saw-blade having its rear end rounded to form the arc of a circle and provided with an opening at a point constituting the center .from which the saidy arc of a circle is struck, and a series of openings in the saw-blade equidistant from its edge, arranged along the back edge of the saw and in the butt-'end near the front edge thereof, of a handle pivoted on a pin passing 'through the central opening, said handle I OO 

